COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (Jun. 22, 2010) -- The Space Foundation is helping early childhood teachers develop activities to interest very young children in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). The 25 teachers enrolled in this week's Space Foundation class "PreK-2 Early Childhood Space Exploration," are learning age-appropriate, hands-on activities they can immediately use with their students.

The class resulted from a new partnership between the Space Foundation and Colorado State University (CSU) - Pueblo, and is held on the CSU - Pueblo campus. Focusing on space and science education for young learners, the PreK-2 course provides early childhood educators the necessary tools to inspire very young children through inquiry-based learning. Young children are naturally curious about the world around them, and teachers can use that curiosity to encourage a lasting interest in STEM subjects.

Pictured: Teachers enrolled in the Space Foundation class "PreK-2 Early Childhood Space Exploration," at CSU - Pueblo are learning science lessons to take back to their classrooms. In this lesson, the teachers position objects on special paper then place the paper in sunlight. Shadows emerge where the objects are placed, illustrating how the Sun's light can travel through some objects, and not through others.